Look After You
by HAIRSPRAYaddict
Summary: Based on the song by The Fray. Trust me... it will be glorious!pairings:Trink, Penweed, and other various characters will be sprinkled in. Rated M for smex *drool* DON'T FORGET TO READ&REVIEW! you know the drill!
1. If I Don't Say This Now

**Look After You-Chapter 1- If I Don't Say This Now**

**A/N: This is a story that revolves around the actual song by the Fray. I think that the song is absolutely beautiful and it captures the sublimity of Tracy and Link's relationship. This is my first fanfic about love, so be kind to me. Reviews and NICE comments will be appreciated.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own HAIRSPRAY or the characters involved...sadly. However... if I did I would hold them captive in my room and make them sing "You Can't Stop The Beat" over and over again. That would be heavenly.**

As the chorus sings the last notes of the song and Tracy and Link share their first kiss and loving embrace, a sensation sort of like an electric current flows through their bodies. They know. This is it. This is the beginning of a relationship so deep... so profound that it strikes fear into both of their hearts. But they don't fret because they have each other to hold on to.

Their lips crash together, searching each other's souls. Totally lost in the sublimity of the moment, yearning for more. But sadly, heaven is interrupted when a crowd swarms around them, forcing them apart. They want to dance, autographs, and pictures. The local news crew wants a picture of Tracy with Little Inez, Corny and Maybelle.

Tracy looked up at Link with those big, brown, beautiful eyes of hers, asking for the permission to go. Link ran his fingers through her hair and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead before whispering in her ear,

"Go ahead"

"Oh, Link I swear that I will be back in a flash!", Tracy cried, fearing that she had done something wrong.

"Don't worry about it darlin'" , he assured her, "I'll be over here waiting for you"

"I'll miss you"

"I will miss you even more.", Link replied, as he reluctantly freed her from their embrace.

Tracy scampered off in the direction of Little Inez, Corny and Maybelle. Link watched her, admiring her from afar. He was reluctant about letting her go, but he decided to do so because he needed to think. That kiss had shaken him to the core. All of these different emotions came rushing in and it was a bit overwhelming. He had never felt so much passion...so much fire in one single kiss. But then again, he was kissing Tracy Turnblad here. And she... she... was the definition of passion and fire. And that was the cause of his immediate obsession with her. Right now, he watched her closely, noticing how the lighting in the studio hit her skin and gave it an ethereal glow. How it hit her hair and gave him the urge to run his hands through it. How it hit her eyes and gave them the power to burn through his soul. How it made he look like a little brown-eyed cherub. That's exactly what she looked like: an angel. An angel that was sent to rescue him from being so lost, lonely and empty. _Sweet Jesus._ He needed to find a way to convey his feelings to her.

The problem was though, that he couldn't seem to form a coherent thought. He couldn't think straight let alone thing of a romantic, thoughtful and profound way of professing his love for her. He tried to think of something along the lines of " You mean the world to me", "You bring light and joy to my otherwise dim and somber world"...or maybe... Wait! What if she didn't exactly share the same feelings? What had happened so fast? What had caused this instant infatuation with her? Link resisted the urge to run his hand through his immaculately sculptured hair. He was losing his cool. NO girl had ever done that to him. Link Larkin stayed cool no matter the situation. This...this is...is...

"Love", a voice finished his thought for him and said some other things that just sounded like gibberish to Link.

Link snapped out of his stupor long enough to realize that Seaweed had been standing right next to him for more than a few moments.

"Huh?"

"I said that you must be in love because I've been talking to you for a good while and you just stand there obliviously with that strange look on your face,man. Are you sure that you are all right?"

"Yeah, man. I'm just kinda at a loss for words right now. I need to think...and...you know..." he said trailing off again.

"I think I know where you're coming from, cracker boy. I went through the same thing with my girl" Seaweed said with a smile creeping upon his lips.

"Oh yeah? What did you say to her?"

"I said I've been there. I ain't say that I actually said anything to her."

"So I guess we're both stuck,huh?"

"Seems like it...but hey,man, you just need to realize that that girl that stands before your eyes is nothing short of amazing and is possibly the best thing that ever happened to you."

"You think so,huh? What makes you say that?"

"Let's face it. You seemed like another close-minded cracker at first and I was wondering what Tracy even saw in you. But,hey, you came around. But anyways...Penny seems like the best thing that ever happened to me..."

Link was a bit put off by Seaweed's first thoughts about him but he was put at ease quickly. Seaweed seemed like a pretty good guy. He could quite possibly become Link's only _real_ friend.

"It's just that simple, huh?"

"It's just that simple.",Seaweed repeated,"Maybe you can try it out...here she comes..."

Link turned slightly to see Tracy quickly approaching him. He rapidly put his cool persona back on and reached out to her with arms wide open. She slipped right back into his arms and Link couldn't get over the feel of her body pressing against his. Her head rested on his chest and his head rested on top of hers. He breathed in the sweet scent of her hair. He wished he could hold her like this forever.

"Geez, Trace, you're amazing", he spoke softly.

She looked up at him with a playful smile.

"You're pretty incredible yourself, Mr. Larkin"

"No, seriously darlin' you make me feel things that I have never felt before." he said with a nervous smile,"I almost go insane just trying to talk about it"

"Come on Link, if things get out of hand I can always put you in the looney bin."

Link gave her a nervous chuckle and tightened his grip on her, staring intently into her eyes.

"Aw, Trace. OK. It's like this...I...you...you are..." Link felt as if he were about to have a heart attack with the way it was leaping out of his chest. Small beads of perspiration also started to form on his forehead.

"What?"

"I really have no way of explaining it"

"Try."

He sighed quietly and looked up to the studio ceiling as if the words were up there. Then he looked down again and locked eyes with her. She was still waiting for some kind of response. Then his eyes trailed down to her lips, and he noticed how kissable they looked. He tried his hardest to concentrate and not give in to temptation, but of course temptation got the better of him.

He kissed her slowly, trying to put as much passion and emotion as he could, hoping that this was a sufficient response. Tracy was caught sort of off guard, but easily adjusted and reciprocated the same amount of emotion. After minutes that seemed like hours, they pulled away from each other, breathless.

"Did that suffice, Trace?"

"I don't know. Maybe, a few more could help me give you a straight answer"

They closed in for a few more, but then the sound of someone clearing their throat interrupted them. They turned their heads to see Tracy's parents waiting for her. They started to notice that the studio was closing down and almost everyone was gone.

"Alright kids, I think that's enough for one night, don't you think?" Edna asked sternly.

Tracy and Link smiled sheepishly.

"Of course, Mrs. Turnblad.", Link answered as he pulled Tracy to him for one final hug and kiss before whispering goodbye.

The Turnblad family said their goodbyes and Link watched them drive away from the nearly empty studio. Link smiled to himself until they were out of his sight. He walked in the darkness towards his car, good feelings filling his whole entire body. It wasn't until he put the key in the ignition that he realized that he _still_ hadn't _said_ anything to her

**A/N: I'm pretty sure that I have some factual errors, but oh well its done.**


	2. I Will Surely Break

**A/N: Sorry that I took so long to update. I had to take some time to figure out which way this story was going to go. Now I have a damn good idea. It will be phenomenal. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 2: I Will Surely Break**

Link drove home in silence. Usually he would have the radio on, singing along to it. But tonight he didn't need it. He could still hear the music in his head. Tracy's voice. Tracy's beautiful voice. It was more than enough to keep him content until he pulled into his driveway. The night sky blazed with billions of stars, more than he had ever seen in his life, or maybe they had always been there, and he had been too blind to see them.

Link tried his best to be as silent as possible since it was going on 11 pm, which was just a little over his curfew. He prayed that his father would be fast asleep when he entered the house.

After fumbling with the keys a bit, he eased open the front door of the tiny apartment that he and his father shared. Link tiptoed in, careful not to make the floorboards squeak as he made his way to his room. Though the hallway was dark, there was a small pool of light emitting from his father's room. Link couldn't help but peek in and check on him. Poking his head in the doorway, he saw his father sprawled out in his chair, flinching and quietly crying his deceased wife's name. He had a small glass of vodka at his side along with a neglected bottle of bipolar meds. Link shook his head, and retreated to his room. As soon as he stepped inside, Link felt like he was in a sanctuary. His room provided him with some sort of solace, quickly taking his mind off his father and back on Tracy. He slowly peeled his clothes off, careful not to get them wrinkled, then crept into his bed in only his underwear. As he lied on his back, he let his mind wander. He tried to recall every sensation from that kiss. The softness of her lips. The way she ran her hands up and down his arms and pulled him even closer to her made chills run down his spine… and the way her breasts brushed against his chest…

Link's breath caught in his throat. Despite the cold summer night air that whipped about his body, his temperature rose about ten degrees. He knew that he shouldn't be thinking about Tracy in this manner so early in their relationship and he tried to divert his thoughts but the dull ache in his crotch betrayed his attempts. Link tried once more, but couldn't help but imagine slowly unbuttoning her top, revealing smooth, soft porcelain skin. Couldn't help but imagine the soft moans she would make as he devoured her skin, slowly inching his way to the clasp of her bra. Couldn't help but imagine his body pressed flush against her soft and gentle curves, Studying her angelic face as passionate expressions appear and disappear, while he expertly unhooks the clasp and removes the undergarment from her passion-heated body. Couldn't her breasts, perfectly round, supple and firm , nipples rosy and erect , begging for his touch. Imagining palming them with his bare hands, reveling in her soft cries of pleasure, slowly losing his mind when she arches into him, begging him for contact. Couldn't help but imagine covering one perfectly erect nipple with the heat of his mouth while running his thumb over the other, then repeat the same actions with its twin. Couldn't help but imagine grinding himself against her while her moans became more fervent, begging for him to...

STOP

Link at last made a successful attempt to do away with these thoughts. He opened his eyes slowly, regaining awareness of his surroundings. The night air was still cold, but he wouldn't know the difference because he was on fire. He could all but ignore the fire in the pit of his belly and to top it all off his erection was throbbing violently. He sighed into the still air. He harshly chided himself for those extremely inappropriate thoughts and what they... provoked. It took a good while for his erection to go down, but eventually the throbbing ceased. Link turned on his side in preparation, hoping that sleep would come soon, so that he could have (hopefully more innocent) dreams of Tracy.

Meanwhile, back in her bedroom, Tracy was fighting a losing battle with sleep. She was just too elated to go just yet. She was still in utter disbelief that _Link Larkin _had kissed her. She sighed dreamily into the cold summer air. For some strange reason, the cold air had always reminded her of romance. Maybe because she had always fantasized about being kept warm by the man of her dreams holding her close, running his fingers through her hair and whispering in her ear. However, reality would set in and she would be left in the cold, alone. This thought always evoked a small pang of bitterness from her. There was really nothing going wrong in her life, but she had always felt that there was something missing, something she couldn't quite put her finger on. Then one day she recognized it when she saw a couple walk hand in hand down the hallways of Patterson Park High. They were completely engrossed in and totally content with each other. Then that couple turned into five more then eventually almost everyone was paired off. Tracy felt as if there was somebody for everyone, but absolutely no one for her. She was quickly proved wrong, though. No other girl could be this lucky. She was glad she finally got what she deserved. Now she would never have to face the cold alone again... she hoped.

Seaweed ran as if his life depended on it, firmly clutching Penny's arm, dragging her with him. He didn't stop once for breath, despite Penny's incessant complaining and heart-wrenching sobs. They had run from Penny's house to North Avenue, where his mother's record shop and his home were located. Arriving at his front door, they finally rested.

"Seaweed, what am I going to do?", Penny cried uncontrollably, "I have nowhere to go…she…she's gonna kill me, I know it…then she'll laugh as I burn in hell forever…and…"

Seaweed grabbed her and held her close, temporarily ceasing her sobbing. _How could this happen?_ He had just gone to Penny's house to drop her off, thinking it would go smoothly. However, Penny's mother met them at the front door, arms flailing, shouting her curses, and telling Penny to go ahead and keep running because she could never run away from perdition.

Penny was absolutely shaken up by the whole thing. Seaweed felt like he needed to step in and protect his love from any harm that came her way.

"Baby, look at me," he said tilting her chin to face him" as long as you are with me you will always have a place to go and someone to hold you and protect you. Don't you ever forget that… do you understand me?"

Penny nodded weakly, still sniffing

With that, Seaweed opened the door, promptly greeted by his mother and sister. After explaining the whole situation to them, Maybelle got everyone settled and issued out sleeping arrangements and announced that they would handle everything else in the morning. Penny was to sleep in Seaweed's bed and Seaweed belonged on the couch. Everyone else went to their respective rooms.

Once in Seaweed's bed, Penny immediately felt safe and comforted. She breathed in the scent of his linens, a scent that was all him. Then the memories of the night came swimming back to her and her eyes started to well up. As twisted as her mother was, she had some kind of hold on Penny, a religious hold. If Penny defied her mother, she was defying God Himself, as far as she knew. That's what kept her wrapped around her mothers finger, that's what made her submit to her mother's every demand. That's what made her tolerate all of her mother's untreated schizophrenic outbursts. She felt obligated to. And that obligation is what made Penny feel wrong for lying in his bed at that moment. But Penny was too tired to think, so after a while she surrendered into a fitful sleep.

Seaweed didn't feel right sleeping on the couch with Penny all alone and distraught as she was. He knew that he was going to catch hell from his mama in the morning, but he decided to accompany Penny in his bed for the night. He stealthily sneaked into his room and quickly hushed Penny when she saw him. He crept into the bed and pulled the covers over the two of them, finding that it was quite warm and that her body felt so good so close to his. He scooped her up into his arms and dried her tears. He whispered to her softly until his breathing steadied and he drifted off to sleep with his girl in his arms. But Penny didn't follow suit. She felt safe in Seaweed's arms but this nagging voice in her head kept commanding her to go back, or else she would have to suffer for all eternity in hell. Penny tried to ignore it but it was persistent. Eventually she gave in. She carefully slipped out of Seaweed's arms and changed out of the gown that Maybelle had lent her back into her clothes. She crept out the door, blowing a kiss to Seaweed in her haste. Penny ran, heading out of North Avenue just as clear dawn was approaching


	3. As I'm Leaving

**A/N: Phew!! This chapter took a LOT of time and effort, because it is soooo close to my heart. Penny's story needed to be told and I did it the best way I know how. Do you have any idea how hard it was to set ages and dates?? Oh, and don't even think about whining about the length. This chapter is actually half of the original!! I know, I know, I went overboard. But I HAD to…if only you knew…then you would understand. Get a blanket and some caffeine, because this is hella long. I had to drink a crap load of Starbucks™ Frappuccinos™ just to write it.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own HAIRSPRAY but it surely owns me! XD **

**Chapter 3: As I'm Leaving**

With only the crumpled clothes on her back, Penny walked sort of aimlessly through the dim streets of Baltimore. She figured that it was maybe around 4 in the morning, so the sun would be coming up soon and it would be time to go to school shortly thereafter. While she walked she debated whether or not to go back to Seaweed. At three different times she had actually turned around and walked back the way she came, but then an extreme sense of guilt would overcome her and she would restart her forlorn journey back to that wretched dwelling that she called home.

As the sky above her weary head became brighter, Penny tried to decide what she would do when she arrived to her destination. She definitely knew that she would have to brace herself for a beating-that was routine- but Penny had a feeling that her mother would really hurt her this time…maybe even kill her. She had been anticipating this for a while now. It's not as if Penny was suicidal, although she had been once before. In reality, she was really far from it. It's just that she was tired of living in fear, wondering when her mother would actually go through with it, for she had been threatening her for quite some time now. Her perception of the whole situation was a bit distorted and twisted. The way she saw it, Prudy killing her was her obligation to God, for in her mother's eyes, Penny was a sinner filled with demonic spirits. And as it says in the Bible: demons must be bound, even if it does kill the person in the end. Prudy had always told her that she followed The Word down to the letter, and was not afraid to go to the extremes nor did she give a rat's ass Penny's protests and reasoning. Penny was an unclean heathen. Why would she listen to the protests of the devil?

What the root of her mother's religious extremity and enthusiasm was, Penny did not know. If she remembered correctly, it started some time after Prudy's miscarriage with Penny's third brother Tommy, the death of her mother, Linda, and also her long brutal battle with pneumonia. Not many people knew of these things. And only Tracy knew about Penny's brothers and sister. To everyone else, Penny was an only child with a psychotic mother.

Penny had a sister named Cynthia who was ten years old and also five brothers: Zachary, 8, Gavin, 8, Tommy, stillborn, Terry, 2, and Colin, 1. Cynthia, Zachary, Terry and Penny all shared the same father. But Gavin and Colin were the product of her mother and stepfather's brief marriage. Before CPS (**A/N:** child protective services, for those who don't know) got involved and her father got incarcerated, Zachary and Terry lived with Penny's father and stepmother and Penny, Cynthia, Gavin and Colin used to stay with her mother.

To even give anyone the whole story takes a long trip back in time, way before any of the chaos set in. It all started back when Prudy, Wilbur, Edna, Link's father, John, and Penny's father, James were attending Patterson Park High School. Wilbur and Edna were high school sweethearts, well to Edna they were (it took Wilbur a while to figure out what she was getting at). Edna was Prudy's best friend. Prudy was an abused impoverished little wretch who was on the brink of desperation. That's where James comes in. He was wealthy and madly in love with Prudy. When they finally went steady, he treated her like a queen, bought her anything she wanted, submitted to her every demand. Prudy never really loved James but hey, he was her extremely handsome ticket out of poverty.

Time and time again, Edna warned Prudy of what she was getting herself into. She was sure sooner or later Prudy was going to break James' heart. However, fourteen-year old Prudy was too self-concerned to listen and so four years later on her 18th birthday she married twenty-two-year-old James Pingleton. They quickly moved in together and started their life as husband and wife. Unbeknownst to her, James' wealth had diminished since 1928. Even though he and his family seemed untouchable even after the stock market crash in 1929, he too had to bow down to the wrath of the Great Depression of the 1930s. He was forced to drop out of Brown University and work odd jobs for meager wages. Sometimes he worked three jobs at a time, for he loved Prudy with all his heart and he wanted to give her the best that he could. However, Prudy withdrew from him, mainly because he really didn't have anything to offer her. Of course they made love occasionally, but besides that their relationship was cold, platonic and impassionate. For a great deal of their marriage, Prudy was resentful and brooding because she married this man to get out, but it seemed like a wasted effort because she ended up right back where she started from. As time progressed, James realized that Prudy didn't exactly return his affections and he started to retreat, and just let the relationship run its course. Divorce was not an option, for the 1930s were a time of great suffering and desolation; no one could afford to get divorced. So the two distanced lovers stayed and fought their way out of the Depression as well as their relationship.

While James toiled at work, Prudy stayed at home and did absolutely nothing but drink, and they followed this routine up until one drunken night. The result was born on April 22, 1946. Penelope Pingleton was the little bundle of joy that ameliorated their bitter union. However, their peace period was absurdly brief, and then they resumed their routine. However, this time James worked and Prudy's slightly excessive drinking got heavier. She would go out on a whim and go to the clubs and stay out until the wee hours of the morning. It got so bad to where James' last resort was to lock her and Penny both in the house until he returned home. Nonetheless, Prudy would find a way out and leave young Penny slowly drifting off to sleep.

'Mama will be back before you open your eyes in the morning, I promise' she would whisper in her ear before she stole away in the night. Penny had to admit that she did indeed miss her mother coming in at 4:30 a.m., dress soaked with the scent of wine, giving her a kiss on the cheek, telling her that she was her own little miracle. The night crawler mother she once had was a whole lot better to live with than the religious fanatic mother she had now. The one who sent Penny through hell and back, throwing around accusations of rape, molestation and incest with her dad (which got him incarcerated), of hypocrisy, of condemnation. The one who robbed Penny of her will to live. The one robbed her of her identity, of her relationship with God. The one who still had the living room light on. Penny could see that the light was on despite the scarcely illuminated sky. Penny slowly approached her house, praying that her death be quick and not in vain. Then she remembered that she left her key at Seaweed's house. She knocked on the door and was not surprised to see that the TV shop owner answered it.

The shop owner had been frequenting their house early in the mornings so that he and Prudy could hold their Morning Prayer meetings. To Penny he was nothing but her mother's minion, keeping an eye out for her while he was working, so that if he saw anything he could call and report.

"O, my Lord! Penny where have you been? " Mr. Thomas asked with mock concern.

Penny grumbled under her breath

"Where is my mother?"

"She went somewhere, she should be returning shortly' he said nonchalantly, apparently losing interest in her.

At this Penny quickly sprung into action, she raced to her room and ripped her clothes off and scrambled to find more. She got dressed and groomed and raced out of the door, ignoring Mr. Thomas's phony goodbye.

She ran until she reached her bus stop. God had mercy on her and let the bus come quickly. She hopped on and sat in one of the seats near the back of bus, body shaking at how close she was to not making it. Before she knew it, she was at school. She walked off the bus and was not surprised see Tracy, Link and Seaweed waiting for her.

**A/N: Since the chapter titles are the lyrics to the song, I thought it would be kinda retarded to have an As I'm Leaving Pt.I and Pt.II. So what ever penweed action you see in The One I Want To Take are the leftovers from this one.**

**P.S: This is just a random thought, you know, I'm just throwing it out there. Am I the only one who thinks that the movie has some degree of symbolism? For example, Link could represent Abe Lincoln. Since both men started out as indifferent towards race relations, but as time progressed, they began to support equal rights. Like I said…just a thought.**


	4. The One I Want To Take

**A/N:** You know you're obsessed with Hairspray when you try to write an essay on Abraham "Link" for a major exam. (Thankfully, I had enough sense to correct my mistake before I turned it in)… Like I explained in the last chapter there will be some Penny/Seaweed leftovers in here along with some much needed Trink…enjoy. (Remember, boys and girls, to write about Abraham Lin_**coln**__)._

**Disclaimer**: I don't own HAIRSPRAY. I only own my DVD's and soundtrack…which is sad.

**Chapter 4: The One I Want To Take**

**(A/N: I wrote two freakin' chapters before I realized that the Miss Teenage Hairspray Pageant was on **_**Saturday**_** June 2, not on Sunday. bangs forehead on desk .That just screws me over when it comes to the timing aspect of the story. But I'm begging you guys to bear with me and just **_**pretend**_** that it was on a Sunday so that the story makes sense. Pretty please?) **

Immediately, Tracy rushed to her side.

"Penny, what is wrong with you? Seaweed told me everything! Are you OK? "Tracy inquired anxiously, inspecting Penny's body for bruises or swelling.

"It's alright, Tracy. You and Link go ahead. I got her." Seaweed said solemnly.

Tracy reluctantly retreated, and took Link by the hand.

"See you later, Penny", the said in unison as they walked away. Once they were gone, Seaweed turned to Penny.

"Why did you leave me last night?"

Tears instantly appeared in her eyes.

"I had to Seaweed…I…I just had to."

"You don't have to do anything! You don't owe that woman a goddamned thing!" He was almost shouting in exasperation.

Penny just stared at him shaken and distraught.

He decided to drop the conversation until they got somewhere more exclusive. He took her hand and they walked into the building. Seaweed began to lead her in a strange direction.

"Seaweed, where are you going? My classroom is this way."

"We are going to circle around. I'm trying to make both of us late so we can get to detention"

Penny went along with it. She took his lead until the circled back to her classroom. He stood outside while she entered.

"Ms. Pingleton, you are late. Now-", the teacher began.

"I know. I know." Penny said as she nearly snatched the detention slip and walked out of the classroom.

"You got it?" Seaweed asked.

"Yeah."

"Then let's go."

They walked to his classroom where he followed the same routine, then continued on to detention. They walked in, greeted everyone and bee lined to the back of the classroom. The detention kids knew something had to be wrong if Seaweed wasn't dancing, so they courteously turned the music down and mingled quietly as Penny and Seaweed talked.

"Baby, I'm not trying to be insensitive, but I just cannot understand for the life of me why you keep going back to her. Why do you put yourself through all the pain?"

"Seaweed you just don't understand. She's sick, she's been through a lot in her life and she doesn't really have any one but me. I have to take care of her, Seaweed. I have to. That's my job. I don't care what she does to me…"

"Penny, the purpose of having a parent is for them to take care of you. Not the other way around. And if she really as sick as you think she is, she should be a real parent and get herself some help instead of placing the burden on you."

"I know that, Seaweed. And don't get me wrong, I hate having to carry her cross. But she can say and do things that can make me do anything she wants. She says that I strayed from God's path once and I'm not trying to catch hell from her and Him if I do it again."

"What did you do?"

"I don't know…nothing. I think."

"Why would you accept the punishment for something you didn't do?"

"I don't know."

Seaweed began to doubt her sanity.

"Penny, baby, are you sure that you're thinking clearly?"

"Of course I am."

"It's just that you're not approaching the situation rationally. A normal person would have been moved the hell on."

"Well, I guess I'm not a normal person."

He knew that was it. If they would have continued, the conversation would have just gone in circles and they would have never gotten anywhere. Instead of pressing the situation, he took Penny into his arms. He guessed that this is what his mama was talking about when she said 'You can lead a camel to water, but you can't force it to drink'. If Penny didn't want to be saved, he just had to stand on the sidelines until he absolutely had to come to her rescue, or at least until she comes to him for help. He hated that it had to be this way, but he couldn't do much to convince her.

"I'm sorry that I'm being so difficult." Penny whispered into his shoulder.

"It's OK. Your situation is not the easiest to cope with. That's why I'm here. I'm just seriously worried because school ends in four days. Do you know what that means? That means it's gonna be hella hard to see each other. Even worse, it's gonna be nearly impossible to protect you when you are not my sight. If anything were to ever happen to you, Penny, I swear…"

"Seaweed, you're making this harder than it already is!" Her sudden outburst damn near silenced every one in the room, but she continued her hysteric rant.

"Jesus Christ, Seaweed! What I want to do is to get this over with! I'm so tired… so tired. I want it to end already. I just want to let it die. Let me die… I'm so damned tired of living. But at the same time I don't want to leave this Earth because you're here and I want to stay with you but I can't because SHE keeps pulling me back. And…damn it…Seaweed…I just want you to hold on to me…please…don't let me go… I'm begging you… don't let me go…"

Penny continued bawling incoherently and all Seaweed could do was hold her even tighter. The detention kids were all staring at them now. It took a lot of restraint not to tell them to turn around and mind their goddamned business. At that moment, everything was slowly beginning to make sense to him; _she_ was beginning to make sense to him. He figured that Penny didn't exactly have a death wish, but was just caught between a rock and a hard place and it was completely overwhelming her. He decided that even though she refused his help, he would still help her somehow. However, it had to be discreet, indirect, and passive, sort of behind-the- scenes. Every where she walked, he would shadow her. When she slept fitfully in her bed, he would be watching over her. It sounded sort of stalker-ish, but he didn't give a damn. Penny was his girl, possibly the love of his life. It would kill him if even the tiniest scratch ruined that exquisite skin of hers.

"Don't …let…me… go" Penny whimpered between sobs.

"I won't, baby, I can promise you that much. I would die with you in my arms. I'll never let you go."

Penny gave Tracy a horrible scare. She could barely process all that Seaweed had told her earlier. It just wouldn't register in her mind. Tracy always feared for her best friend's safety. Penny had revealed things to Tracy that she wouldn't dare tell anyone else. Tracy knew everything, and that's what made her so paranoid. However, she had to trust that Seaweed would attend to her needs and look after her. This wasn't exactly easy, but it was possible because she trusted Seaweed and she knew that as long as Penny was with him, she was in good hands. _In good hands…that just sounds lovely…_

Tracy wasn't the kind of girl that was just plain helpless. She could hold her own and stand up for herself when needed. She always prided herself on being so independent. However, as she got older, a hole began to develop in her heart. It was barely detectable, but it was there nonetheless. She tried her hardest to ignore it, but it remained there, the bane of her existence. As time progressed, she grew jealous of the girls whose boyfriends stole kisses from them in the hallway. That hole ached every time the boys touched the girls ever so softly, ever so gently. She wanted to know the feeling, she attempted to conjure the feeling herself, but to no avail. And the thing that really strengthened the pang was when they were held by them, nuzzling their neck, planting wispy, careless kisses on their skin. It just made her _sick. _She would turn her head in denial, in defiance every time she saw it. _I don't need that. I don't need anyone. Those girls are plain brazen anyway. Why would I want to act like that anyway? I have more self-respect than that. Besides, who would ever want to touch me like that?_ Even though she tried to coax herself out of it, she wanted it, needed it, badly. It didn't help that Link Larkin was so utterly fascinating to her, either. He just paraded around the school, oblivious to the inexorable affect he had on her. She would follow him in a daze, watching his every move. Watching as his muscles flexed beneath his clothing. Admiring his large, strong hands and trying to imagine the feeling they would create on her skin. Every time he passed her in the hallway, she would silently plead for contact. _Please touch me. Just once. That's all I want. That's all_ _I need. Just once. _As desperate as they sounded, her pleas were answered, he touched her. And when he finally did, that was it for her. She was forced to surrender to love and become one of the girls she despised_._ This made her ecstatic. She couldn't wait. The problem was that she didn't know how to tell him what she needed. She thought it would be kind of awkward to _order _him to do this or that to her. She felt uncomfortable just thinking about it. She decided that she would just let him handle all of the intimate (?) aspects of their relationship. If she was right about Link, he would be very attentive and knowledgeable of her needs. _He sure looks like he would be._ Her gaze wandered to the back of the classroom. Link retuned her gaze with an even more intense one. A chill ran through her body. She wished that their English teacher would have allowed Link to move farther away from Amber than he did. _Oh, well there are only a few more minutes until the bell rings for lunch._ She looked back at Link, who had the same anxious look on his face. This would be their first lunch together, which was extremely unsettling for Tracy. She had never eaten in front of Link, let alone any other guy. _What if he thinks I'm some kind of… pig or something?_ The bell brought an end to her thoughts. Link stood up and smoothly waltzed up to her.

"If I can recall correctly, I'm supposed to be escorting a beautiful young woman to lunch." Link said as he offered her his hand.

Tracy blushed and immediately her eyes fell to the floor as she took the proffered hand. They walked out of the classroom and all the way to the cafeteria without Tracy uttering a single word.

"Is there something bothering you darlin'", Link inquired almost nervously. He tried to keep his cool, but was still worried that he had done something wrong.

"No, I'm fine Link"

"It's just that…I'm a little nervous", Tracy confessed.

"Trust me darlin', you have nothing to worry your pretty little head about. You're with me. You trust me, right?"

"Of course I do!"

"Well, then, this should run smoothly. There's nothing to be afraid of." He pulled her closer for reassurance.

Even after that, Tracy was still a bit uneasy. Link paid for their lunches and selected the table. He seated her and then sat down in the seat directly across from her. She was still as quiet as a mouse.

"Looks good", Link said, trying to break the ice.

"Sure."

"Tracy."

She continued to look down

"Tracy, darlin', look at me."

She brought her eyes up to meet his. She looked like a child frightened because she couldn't find her mother.

"Why are you behaving this way?"

"I just don't want to humiliate myself in front of you."

"Nonsense, darlin'"

She didn't budge.

"Tell ya what. I won't take a single bite of my food until you eat _something_. You can either eat your lunch or force your new boyfriend to go hungry. Your choice". With this, he leaned back in his chair with a huge smirk on his face, awaiting her first move.

Tracy stared at him challengingly for a moment, looking as if she wouldn't budge. Link persistently smirked at her. They stared at each other for what must have been an eternity.

Link dramatically glanced at his watch and held his sides.

"Oh, my God, Tracy! I am completely famished! I don't know how much longer I can hold out! It's getting black! Tracy, why is everything turning black?!", he exclaimed loudly and melodramatically.

Tracy rolled her eyes, stabbed her food with her fork, and took a bite.

"Oh, God! It's a miracle. I'm cured!"

"You win this time, Larkin."

"Is that so? Well, I guess you do deserve a consolation prize", he said slyly.

"What do you mean?"

"Let's finish our lunch, and you'll find out"

They ate their food in silence, and when they were finished, they threw the trays away. Link took her hand and started to lead her through a labyrinth of hallways.

"Where are you taking me, Link?"

"You shall find out in time, darlin'"

She remained quiet until the settled into the darkest corridor she had ever seen in the school.

"Where are we?"

"Our little hideaway."

"Oh, now we have a hideaway?"

"You like it?"

"I love it."

"Good, so I was planning on us getting some alone time in up here"

"What exactly did you have in mind?", she asked deviously.

"Oh, nothing much. Just a bit of this…" ,he said as he gave her a soft kiss on the lips.

A small smile appeared on her lips, and he took that as a signal to proceed. He hadn't gotten the chance to properly kiss her since the pageant. He rested his hands on her waist. She sighed in appreciation. He closed the remaining space between them and guided her to the nearest wall. He firmly pressed her against it, and she looked up at him in anticipation. Link leaned in once again and kissed her softly, taking it slowly at first. She responded eagerly, returning every ounce of passion he gave her. This made him excited and he kissed her even harder. He ran his tongue along her bottom lip, begging for entrance. Tracy gladly granted it to him, and allowed him to taste her. Link carefully inched his hands along her curves, trying to find out how comfortable she was with what he was doing. His hand slid down from her waist and cautiously traveled along her side. Fortunately, he heard a small moan escape her throat, so he progressed. He slowly broke their kiss, which caused Tracy to whine a bit. He began placing small kisses on her cheek and along her jaw line, until he claimed the soft flesh on her neck. She moaned louder this time, gently clinging to him as he devoured her flesh. Tracy was overwhelmed with pleasure; she would have never thought that anyone could make her feel this good. After a few more moments of searing kisses, Link ended their impromptu make out session. The bell was going to ring any second. Without a sound, they traveled back to the more illuminated parts of the school. Link stroked 

her hand, making small circles as he held it tight. Tracy smiled secretly and decided that she was indeed right about Link.


	5. Forgive The Urgency

December 10, 1962

**A/N:** Sorry I took so long, people. This was hard. Oh yeah, thanks to all my wonderful reviewers. You guys rock.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own HAIRSPRAY.

**Chapter 5: Forgive The Urgency**

December 10, 1962

It had to be the coldest winter morning of her life.

Tracy stood outside of her Baltimore home, dressed in her heaviest winter coat, yet still freezing. She solemnly gazed at the light traffic going up and down her street. The wind blew, an addition to the frigidity of the weather. It whistled through her ears and caused wisps of hair to dance about her face. Her brow was furrowed, revealing her irritation. She hated having to stand in the cold alone. Her parents liked to sleep in a bit during the winter, leaving Tracy to wake herself and make her own breakfast. Earlier that morning, she had walked out of the door, leaving it unlocked. After about five minutes in the cold, she decided she couldn't take it and opted to wait for Link inside. She tried to open the door but to no avail. Someone had gone behind her and locked it. And to make matters worse, she had forgotten her key. She rapped on the door as hard as she could and screamed for her parents as loudly as she could without disturbing the peace, but unfortunately they were out cold. Tracy wondered if normal people woke up to lock the door and went back to sleep. Thus she was forced to stand outside and wait for Link who was unusually and uncharacteristically late. She looked at her watch and figured that she had already missed her bus and the garbage truck as well. Her parents weren't scheduled to really wake up until 8:30 or nine. It was way too cold to walk. Tracy was stuck. Link was her only option. She began to tap her foot impatiently. She looked up at the endless white of the sky, the sun looking like nothing more than a white orb, shining bleakly through the ubiquitous clouds.

An old newspaper danced and rolled across the nearly deserted street like a tumble weed. Tracy observed every aspect of her surroundings in complete silence, thoroughly analyzing everything from the people walking out of their houses on their way to work to the stray dog that was lazily sprawled out under her neighbor's stoop. As much as the cold annoyed her, it did make her more prone to mull over whatever was on her mind at the moment. At this particular moment she was reflecting on the recent events of her life. She began to think about the many things that happened over the past seven months. Times during the summer were pretty hard the most catastrophic times she had ever seen in her seventeen years of life. As Seaweed had predicted, all hell had broken loose the day that Penny went back to her mother's house. Prudy had given Penny some tired old sob story and convinced her to stay until the last day of school. That fateful day, Prudy was forced to surrender to a CPS investigation while Penny was removed from the home. It turned out that someone had called and reported what happened the night that Penny ran off with Seaweed. Prudy chose to temporarily place Penny with the Turnblads since the investigation was supposed to last 30-45 days. However, Penny had been living with the Turnblads for at least six months. It turns out that CPS discovered some pretty disturbing things concerning Penny's environment at home. Penny, who was in bed with the flu at the moment, had been through a lot and it was a struggle for everybody. It killed Tracy to even think about the situation, so she decided to deviate from those thoughts and think about the time that she and Link spent together. That summer, practices for the show had been brutal, but nonetheless Tracy enjoyed dancing alongside Link and Seaweed as well. Amber and her little cabal of sadness had tried persistently to make life miserable for Tracy and her friends, but after they realized their little tricks and pranks were ineffective, they eventually gave up. This gave Tracy and her friends more freedom and opportunities to do whatever they wanted. The two couples would go on double dates all the time, going to the movies, or to the beach. Link and Tracy would take the time they had after practice to go to Link's house. Tracy began to blush when she thought about how he would gently lay her down on his comfortable bed, kissing her with inconceivable passion, cautiously caressing her body, careful not to disrespect her in anyway. He would run his fingers through her hair and place tender kisses on her neck, knowing that it drove her crazy, knowing that it made her squirm beneath him. Thinking about this made Tracy forger how cold it was. She shook her head vigorously trying to get rid of those thoughts. She decided to think about the many in-depth conversations they had read each others favorite books, told each other their favorite jokes, basically just getting to know each other better. They had gone school shopping together in late August. They entered their senior year together and had almost every class period together. The two of them were inseparable, almost joined at the hip, they were so close. It was scary how quickly they had fallen for each other, but nonetheless thrilling, and Link was beyond eager to show how strong his feelings were for Tracy. For her 17th birthday in November, Link bought her the most expensive looking gold pendant and chain. At first, Tracy couldn't bring herself to accept such an outlandish gift, but Link insisted that she wear it. Tracy absentmindedly fingered the charm that now hung around her neck. She thought about how good Link was to her, how special he made her feel and how strongly she felt for him. She was completely in love with him. She smiled at this. The idea of love had been looming over her head for months, but she ignored it. Now she accepted it wholeheartedly. The idea alone made her giddy, but another gust of icy wind ruined it and made her remember that she was about to freeze to death. She wondered where the hell Link was. She waited a few more minutes and finally saw his black Cadillac turn on her street. She was sure to pout to show her strong disapproval, her dark hair contrasting her porcelain skin. Link pulled up to the curb, with an apologetic look in his eyes. He put the car in park and bolted out of the driver's seat, looking uncharacteristically frazzled and flustered. He was by Tracy's side in no time, planting a kiss on her cold lips, rashly pulling her body against his.

"I'm sorry that I'm late, darlin'", he said hurriedly as he opened the door for Tracy, "But we still have like ten minutes to get to school".

He shut her door without waiting for a response and rushed to jump into the driver's seat and start the car. They had just pulled away from the curb when she opened her mouth to speak. Link instantly cut her off, already knowing her question.

"I kinda overslept and woke up late. I didn't get much sleep last night. I'm so sorry babe, I know you hate the cold", he said adjusting the heat in the car.

Tracy didn't exactly _hate_ cold weather; she just hated standing in it alone. If she was with Link everything would have been lovely.

"Why didn't you get any sleep?"

"What? Oh. It's no big deal, darlin'. I was just worried about my history test"

Tracy knew this was a lie. Link Larkin was the last person who needed to worry about a history grade. He was hiding something.

"Are you sure, Link?"

"Of course, babe. Don't worry your pretty little head about it."

This was the end of discussion. Tracy could sense the finality in his voice. She knew from experience that this meant 'back off'. She was sure he was leaving her in the dark about other things as well.

"Where's Penny", he asked even though they were already 10 blocks from her house. Penny usually hitched a ride with Link and Tracy. He was trying to change the subject.

"She's in bed with the flu. She'll be out for about two more days."

"Hmph. Poor thing."

The car fell silent. Link was driving near top speed, determined to get them there in time. Frustration and bewilderment was engraved in his eyes and he tried so hard to mask it. He took one hand off of the wheel and grabbed Tracy's hard. She could feel the tension. She stared at him with questioning eyes, but he didn't dare look into her eyes. If he did he was sure he was going to fall apart.

"Link, are you absolutely sure that you're okay?"

"Yes, Trace."

"It's just that the last time I talked to you was on Saturday and you were perfectly fine then, and now you're acting all weird. I'm not trying to be overbearing, I just worry about you sometimes."

Link didn't respond. He just tightened his grip around the steering wheel and Tracy's hand, his eyes concentrating on the road ahead of them. Tracy still didn't take his eyes off of him, though. She silently studied his face. His brow was furrowed. His eyes were hard and cold, even though the dim sunshine was hitting them at the perfect angle. His hair wasn't as immaculate as it usually was. And it scared her, but she could swear that there were faint traces of scars along his cheekbone and jaw line.

Tracy sighed and looked out of the window, suddenly realizing they were pulling into the school. Link parked the car and hastily helped Tracy out. He was practically dragging her by the hand, since his pace was faster than hers and she took five steps for every one of his, as they walked into the school. They were only a short distance from Tracy's class when the bell rang.

"You better hurry along, Trace"

"OK, Link. See you next period."

She wrapped her arms around him, applying a bit too much pressure to his back. Link hissed in pain.

"What's wrong, Link?"

"Oh, it's nothin' darlin'. See you soon", he said as he planted a soft kiss on her lips. He then grabbed her by the shoulders, twirled her around and gently pushed her into the classroom, obnoxiously smirking at the adorable pout on her face. He turned around and started walking towards his class, exhaling in relief.

* * *

Penny stared at the ceiling of her and Tracy's room. She had a temperature of at least 103 degrees and her whole body was aching, but none of that compared to the pain she felt inside. The memories of the last few days with her mother had been haunting her for what seemed like ages now. There wasn't a day or night that didn't replay everything in her head and today was no exception. She looked around their empty room. The sun shone mutedly through the curtain. She could hear Tracy's parents, finally awake, bustling through the house, preparing for the rest of the day. Penny struggled to breathe in and out while her eyelids drooped against her will. She drifted back to sleep for the third time that morning, slipping into another nightmare, reliving the pain once again.

**FLASHBACK**

It had taken a bit of time, but Penny finally got Seaweed to let her go. She boarded her bus and took the same seat she had that morning. Her head was pounding and her stomach turned as she quietly awaited her demise. She took some time to look at the world around her, figuring that it would be her last time seeing everything. She hoped that the last kiss she gave Seaweed was memorable enough. She felt guilty that she hadn't really talked to Tracy today, leaving her without a chance to even say goodbye. It was too late for that now. The bus was rapidly approaching her stop, proving that the universe was conspiring against her. In about five minutes, it halted to a stop and the doors swung open. Penny slowly rose to her feet, and slowly exited the wretched vehicle. As soon as she hit the concrete, it sped off, dismissing any chance of escaping now. She dragged her feet across the surface of the sidewalk, taking baby steps. She hoped this would delay having to face whatever awaited her at home. She prayed every single prayer she knew in her head, resisting the urge to drop dead against the concrete.

She noticed that she was only three blocks away from her house. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest, and she suddenly felt sick to her stomach. Every step she took was a closer step to death. Her breath was ragged and the adrenaline rushed through her veins, even though she knew she stood no chance trying to fight back. She approached her doorstep for the second time that day. She absentmindedly turned the knob, forgetting that she didn't have her key, but surprisingly it opened. She entered the house and was not surprised to see that Mr. Thomas was in the living room, sitting on the couch, reading a book.

"Um, Mr. Thomas, where's my mom?"

Before he could answer, Prudy suddenly appeared in her robe, hair sticking out in all kinds of directions, make-up smeared and the strangest expression on her face.

"Mom, I-"

Without warning, Prudy let out a shrill scream and dashed towards her bedroom.

Penny, startled and confused, chased after her.

"Mom? Mom?!"

Penny reached her room, but her mother was nowhere in sight. All of a sudden she heard a noise coming from her mother's bathroom. Penny rushed to the bathroom and found er mother seated at the edge of the bathtub, random pieces of paper scattered about the floor. Prudy quickly looked one over and let it fall to the floor. Penny realized that these papers were her thoughts that she had written about everything from her father's incarceration to the way Prudy treated her.

"Mom, what's going on? What's wrong?"

"Is this what you really think of me Penny? Am I really this terrible. You think I'm a bad mother?", Prudy inquired, barely looking at her.

"Mom,I-"

"And all these years I've been trying. Trying so fucking hard to raise you along with the others, and this is the shit I get? It's like whatever I do…it's not good enough. I can't win. I can never fucking win!", Prudy screamed, voice breaking.

Penny waited a few minutes to speak again.

"Mom, you can't have everything"

"What the fuck do I have Penny? Tell me that. What do I have?"

"You have me."

"Don't give me that fake shit, Penny. You ran off with that colored boy without ever looking back."

"But I came back! I came back for you, Ma!"

"Penny, please."

"No, Ma! I came back, doesn't that mean anything?"

Prudy just sat there for a while without speaking or moving. Penny started fidgeting. This is when she finally spoke.

"Let's get a few things straight, Penny."

Penny simply nodded.

"I am your mother. Damn everyone else. I'm the only person who matters, understand?"

"Yes, ma'am", Penny responded in a shaky voice.

"You shall not leave this house except to go to school."

"Yes, ma'am."

"And you shall NEVER see that colored boy again!"

"Mom, no!"

"No? No? Are you trying to defy me Penny Pingleton? Your own mother? You filthy little unclean whore!"

With this, Prudy rose and turned the knobs on the bathtub until the water was gushing out. She turned to Penny with pure rage in her eyes.

Before Penny had a chance to make a run for it, Prudy grabbed a fistful of her hair and dug her elbow into her back, forcing her down towards the tub.

Penny's mind was racing. She was in a captive position. This is it. She's finally going through with it. Penny was scrambling to give herself her Last Rites as her head dropped deeper and deeper into the tub. Prudy yanked

Penny's head around until it was completely immersed underneath the running water. Penny quickly realized that her mother wasn't going to drown her; she was going to baptize her, which was probably just as horrific.

"I call on you, Lord Jesus, to cast out the demons that possess this little wretch"

The water was running at full force, pounding on Penny's head. It spilled over into her eyes, adding to the stream of tears running down her face.

"Cast them out of her…cast them out of her!"

With every single word, Prudy's fist pounded into Penny's head. Prudy pounded and shrieked for about five more minutes until she shut the water off and yanked Penny's head back at full force. She still had her by the hair as she dragged her out into the bedroom and threw her to the floor like a rag doll. Penny laid there on the floor, afraid to move. Prudy wiped her hands on her robe and simply walked out of the room. Penny kept her head planted on the floor, and didn't dare cry. She started to breathe again. She had yet to begin to gather the courage to stand up when her mother barged back into the room. This time she didn't even say anything, she just lifted Penny off of the floor by her hair, causing Penny to wince in pain. She forced her to her feet and dragged her into the hallway.

"I won't tolerate someone so uncouth in my household. Go read your Bible."

With that, she flung Penny towards her room. Penny trudged up the stairs, a single tear escaping and running down her cheek.

**END FLASHBACK**

Penny woke abruptly, her body shaking in fear. She sighed when she realized it was just another nightmare. She took a sip of water from the glass on her nightstand, deciding to stick to staring at the ceiling.

* * *

Link's black Cadillac was cruising down the street, heading towards his house. His hand was firmly gripping the steering wheel just as it was this morning. Tracy sat in the passenger seat, a bit exhausted from the show. However, that wasn't really what was troubling her at the moment. She was far more concerned with why Link was acting like

he had lost his mind. He had been awfully quiet all day. His body felt tense whenever she touched him. He had been disturbingly distant during the breaks on the show. He barely talked to anybody, except Tracy and he said very little to her. Since they had gotten into the car, they hadn't spoken a word. The radio could be heard faintly in the background. Tracy kept herself occupied by looking out of the window. She acknowledged the sights in her mind. Building. Sign. Cart. Church. She looked down at the street. Line…line, line, line, line. She shook her head and looked away. She feared that he wasn't the only one losing their mind. Before she knew it, they were pulling into Link's driveway. Without looking at her, he killed the ignition and exited the vehicle. Tracy sighed and banged her head against the headrest. Link was really working her last nerve. He opened the door and grabbed her hand, nearly dragging her out of the car. Tracy stumbled, trying to keep up with his pace as they walked up to his apartment building. His grip on her hand grew tighter as he led her through the hallway and up the stairs. She tried to tug away, but he had a death grip on her.

"Link, what is your problem?! Why are you being so pushy today?"

Link only shot her a short glance and then turned his head forward. Tracy sighed dramatically and decided to play hostage, just to humor him. She decided to remain courteous even though he was aggravating the hell out of her.

They approached the apartment door and only then did he release her hand. She examined her hand and flexed her fingers to make sure they weren't broken. Link took no time unlocking the door and allowed Tracy to go in first. Tracy only walked a few steps away from the door before she started to take off her heavy coat. She had just reached the last button when she felt a pair of hands on her shoulders. Before she could say anything, Link twirled her around and grabbed the bottom of her coat, finishing the last button himself. With pure lust in his eyes, he yanked it off of her and threw it to the floor. He then placed a hand on either side of her face and pulled her in, kissing her roughly. Tracy was utterly confused for a moment; he had totally caught her off guard Link's hands left her face after a while. One traveled down towards her waist and the other was struggling to run through her hair. He was deeply annoyed that she had chosen to wear it in a ponytail, and as a result he swiftly snatched the ribbon out of her hair and let it flutter to the floor along with her coat. He then tangled his fingers his fingers in her silky hair and kissed her even harder, biting down on her lower lip. Tracy moaned against his lip and wrapped her arms around his neck. The sound only fueled his fire as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer to him. He broke their kiss, giving them both some air. He breathed into her neck, making her moan as his hot breath played against the sensitive flesh there.

"I've been waiting to get my hands on you all day", he whispered in her ear before he took a few nips at her neck. A soft moan was Tracy's only response. Even though it was scaring her a bit, she had to admit that Link's impetuosity was really turning her on.

Link took a small step forward, and then another forcing Tracy to walk backwards towards his bedroom. All the while, his hands were planted on her hips, dangerously inching towards her behind. They finally reached his bedroom, falling onto the bed without ever breaking contact. His hands immediately roamed her body, running over precious, familiar curves. Tracy made a small frustrated sound and Link knew that that meant that she wanted to kiss him. Link shifted on top of her, granting her with the fiercest kiss he could conjure. She moaned gratefully as she ran her small hands down his sides, tugging at his shirt, trying to un-tuck it. When she completed this task, she happily slid her hands under the fabric, teasing the perfectly toned flesh there. Link responded by gripping her body, snaking his hands up along her sides until they rested at the curve of her breasts. Immediately, Tracy's skin flushed and her breath became ragged. Link kept his hands there for a moment, and began placing soft kisses on her neck and then traveled downward to claim her collarbone. Tracy had left a few buttons on her blouse undone after the show, leaving a bit of skin exposed and open to Link's gaze. He grew harder thinking about whether or not he should do what he was thinking about doing. It went against his better judgment, but right about now he didn't have a lot of blood in his brain. So he went for it. He slowly traveled down from her collarbone, trying to gauge Tracy's reaction. Tracy didn't mind where his hands were, but where his lips were going was making her panic. Link continued down to her cleavage, and he could have sworn that he heard Tracy's heart pounding in her chest, but she wasn't saying anything so he progressed. He gently licked the flesh there and that earned him a gasp but she still didn't move. So he decided to go a step further, slowly unbuttoning the rest of her blouse.

That did it. Tracy quickly scrambled from beneath him, all the way to the head of the bed. Her eyes were wide open with disbelief, even though she was extremely turned on. She wrapped her arms around herself, concealing her newly exposed skin.

"Link! I-"

Link didn't even wait for her to finish her sentence. He was turned away from her, sitting on the edge of the bed, head in his hands. He had hoped to get rid of a little stress and frustration with Tracy today. Unfortunately, he had only made his disposition worse. He wasn't trying to make her go all the way; he just wanted to blow off a little steam. Now, there was another problem on his list.

"Link! Were you trying to get me to go all the way?! I can't believe you! We discussed this…"

"God, no, Tracy! I just wanted-needed- to touch you. I just wanted to touch you for a little while. I needed you"

With that, Link walked out of the room, leaving Tracy on his bed. Tracy suddenly felt silly for overreacting and yelling at him. She started crying because she felt that she was being selfish. She couldn't do him the smallest of favors, and he did things to her that put her on cloud nine. Link wasn't too far away from the room before he heard the sniffling. His brow furrowed and he smacked himself on the head while turning around and walking back into the room. It had only been a few seconds and Tracy was already in pieces.

"Link…I'm …so…sorry", she said between sobs.

Link made his way to the bed and wrapped his arms around her.

"You didn't do anything wrong, darlin'. It's my fault, babe, not yours."

"But I feel bad because I can't give you what every other girl has given you right now"

"Listen to me, Trace. You are not every other girl. You're my girl. I'm not gonna make you do something that you're ready to do, OK? Now fix your hair and clothes, I'm taking you home"

"Why so early, Link"

"I think that all of this is enough for one day, don't you? Plus, I have a prior engagement anyway"

"Link-" Tracy began.

"Trace, baby, please"

Trace stared at him at for a few seconds, feeling a bit dejected. But she dried her tears and got out of the bed. She quickly adjusted her shirt and skirt and walked out of the room to fetch her coat.

Link got busy fixing his shirt and tie. After the sculpted his hair, he started looking for his jacket. He knew that he should have been a little more sensitive to Tracy's feelings and reaction, but frankly, he didn't have the energy to even deal with it. He already had enough on his plate. He hoped that he did a decent job consoling her. Otherwise, he would have a whole lot more work to do later. Tracy came back in came back in with her coat on. She used one of Link's combs to try to get her hair back in place. Once she was done, they left the apartment and set off for Tracy's house. The ride there was just as quiet as the ride to Link's house. As they came closer to their destination, Tracy spoke up.

"Link, I just want you to know that it's not that I don't want to. It's just that-"

"Tracy. It's OK. I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

"But you acted like you were mad at me for not-"

"I wasn't mad, Trace. God, just let it go. I'm fine. You're fine. Let it go."

"I don't understand, Link. Do you or do you not want me to?"

I want you to come to me whenever you're ready."

"But what about what you want and need?"

He smirked at this.

"Good question, Trace."

"Well, isn't that like a hole in our relationship? Aren't I being selfish?"

"No, Tracy."

"This is really upsetting me"

"What do you want me to say, Trace?", Link asked, raising his voice.

"I don't know."

"Look, honestly, Trace I do want you. But if you're not ready, then I just have to deal with it."

Tracy sighed in frustration. It was like she was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She wanted to, but she just wasn't ready.

"Someday, Link…I will"

"Fine with me.", he responded dryly.

They finally reached her house. Link pulled up to the curb and parked.

"Where are you off to, Link?"

"Some of the guys are getting together at IQ's house. Nothing big."

"I'm still mad."

"Hmph."

"Geez, Link. Just let me out."

"Gladly."

Link got out and helped her out like always. He gave her the last kiss for the day, tasting the anger and frustration on her lips. He knew it was mutual. He headed back to the driver's side and waited 'til she got to the door to face forward. He couldn't even look at her anymore. She wasn't making a lick of sense at all. He waited until he heard her door close to speed off.

* * *

Every single one of them was there. All the guys. They were all calm, cool and collected. Link didn't feel like talking to any of them except Seaweed.

"Link, man, did you-"

Link cut him off, already knowing the question

"No, not yet Seaweed, I couldn't. And today wasn't the best day, she was already mad at me."

You can't keep that kind of thing under wraps for too long, man. I don't even know why you're stallin', shit, you're gonna break the poor girl's heart anyways. Ain't no getting around it. Break it to her gently, though. Don't kick her while she's already down, cracker boy."

"I know…I know. Hey, Seaweed-"

Seaweed cut him off, too, already knowing the question.

"Naw, man. Hell naw. I figured that she's already dealing with enough. I couldn't even do it today, she was at home sick"

"Damn, damn, damn. I'll do it soon… just not now. It'll be a whole lot of damage"

"You better man…you better"

Link rubbed his aching temples and silently hoped that he had enough strength to endure all this.


	6. But Hurry Up And Wait

**Chapter 6: But Hurry Up and Wait**

January 16, 1963

Tracy awoke to the dreadful ringing of her alarm clock on another cold day in January.

"Penny, wake up. It's time to get ready for school", she said groggily. Penny stirred in her bed and whined for a moment."

"Aw…Tracy. It's way too cold to get out of bed."

"I'm not going to be the only one freezing while you stay in bed all warm, now get up!", Tracy nagged, throwing a pillow at Penny.

"Ugh…you seem like you're in a bad mood…as per usual" Penny mumbled spitefully as she crawled out of bed and pulled her robe on. Tracy's whole demeanor had changed in just a few weeks' time. She wasn't exactly terrible or insufferable, but most of the time she had a bad attitude. And that wasn't Tracy.

"Who's gonna hit the bathroom first this time?", Penny asked passively, yawning dramatically.

"I am. I'm gonna take longer getting ready. Today's Link's birthday."

"Celebration.", Penny responded sarcastically.

Tracy let that one slide. She wasn't all that excited herself. Link had been totally insufferable lately and it was taking huge toll on their relationship. He had been doing the strangest things. Right before Christmas break he had arranged to graduate early, which broke Tracy's heart because she had dreamed that they would graduate together. When she asked him the reason, he couldn't even give her a reputable explanation. He tried to slough her off by saying that he had planned to do that a long time ago, but something told Tracy that this was a lie. All Link did was lie, not directly, but indirectly. Withholding his secrets or whatever he was hiding was worse than any spoken lie. Tracy sighed. She entered the shower and let the water run over head. She had resigned from the whole thing a long time ago, right after they stopped talking as much as they used to, right after he stopped looking her in the eyes, right after he started replacing tender caresses with rough groping. Yet, she couldn't bring herself to part from him because the silence that they shared held all the secrets that he tried to conceal, because even though he wasn't looking into her eyes he was still staring straight through her soul, because whenever he groped her, she could still feel the raw need that was there at the beginning of their relationship. She loved him. She was foolishly in love with him. _Love._ She loathed the word now more than ever.

Tracy exited the shower after a while, and started putting herself together. She refused to look like she was in pain in front of Link. She fixed her into the style that she knew Link found irresistible. She applied her makeup, sliding on Link's favorite lipstick. She put on his favorite perfume and put on a dress in his favorite color. While she was at it, she forced a smile. When she was presentable, she vacated the bathroom, giving Penny full occupancy.

"Took you long enough."

"Hush, Penny."

Tracy continued to the kitchen, where her mother was putting the finishing touches on the small cake that Tracy had requested for Link.

"Good mornin',hon."

"Morning, ma."

"I'm almost done. Here, I made something for you and Penny, too" Edna said, pushing a plate of food towards Tracy. Tracy took small bites, with no promises of finishing the meal.

"I can't believe Link is turning eighteen. He's really grown now. He's getting bigger day by day."

"I guess he is, ma", Tracy responded. She had noticed, too. He had grown a few inches taller. He was starting to fill out a bit more. His hands were mammoth-like compared to Tracy's. And she couldn't help but noticing while they were making out that he was heavier than he used to be. All this made him that much more enticing.

Penny and Wilbur entered the kitchen greeting everybody and attacking their breakfast.

"Link's birthday, eh?"

"Yes, daddy"

"He's a good boy…respectable young man."

Tracy rolled her eyes.

"Sure, he is…"

The room was quiet for a moment until the blaring of Link's horn pierced the silence.

"Link's here. I'm gonna go bring him up here."

Tracy headed out of the door without her coat and bounded down the stairs and out onto the curb.

Link was already on the passenger's side, leaning against the car. He spoke as Tracy approached him.

"Why did I have to come early, Trace? What do you have to do? Did you-"

"Calm down, Link. It's nothing big. Come on upstairs."

"Wait…"

Link grabbed her hand, pulling her into a rare, tender kiss. Tracy instantly melted under the sweet embrace. It had been a while since Link kissed her like that. However, she had to cut it short; people were waiting.

"Link, it's freezing out here and I don't even have a coat on…let's go inside.", she said pulling him towards the door.

Link groaned and decided to play hostage for once, wondering what was going on. Tracy led him into the house, all the way into the kitchen. As soon as they stepped foot into the room, every one sang out in unison.

"Happy birthday, Link!"

Link was shocked. He had forgotten all about his birthday

"Come over here so we can sing to you.", Edna insisted.

Link walked over to the small table where everyone was gathered, eyes never leaving the cake. He couldn't remember the last time anyone had thrown a party for him, or even baked a cake for him, mostly because his father seemed totally apathetic towards the day that Link came into the world. He figured that his last decent celebration was his third birthday.

Every body started to sing in accord, voices blending into the perfect harmony. Tracy's sounded most glorious. Link was smiling wide, looking at the faces of the people who really loved him. But then something caught his eye. Something that was so palpable, but somehow he had missed it. He stared intently at the tiny flames of the candles. Instantly his smile faded, turning into a pained grimace. Tracy noticed this at once. She watched him from across the table. His eyes were hard and cold; the flames were reflected in them, flickering about wildly. _What is wrong with him? _The song ended and everybody stared at Link expectantly, but he just stood there, motionless.

"Link, hon, make a wish and blow them out." Edna urged.

"I am.", Link responded monotonously, voice distant.

After a couple of seconds, he leaned over and blew them out, the acrid smoke invading his nostrils, making his grimace deepen. Everyone in the room applauded, and he remembered that he had to smile.

"Here, hon, cut your piece.", Edna said, handing him a knife. Link did what he was told, moving slowly and mechanically. He sat down and took a bite of his cake. It was sweet and delicious; but he could still see the smoke. He still remembered the flames. Tracy studied Link incredulously, rising from her seat after about three minutes.

"Link, Penny and I are going down to the car. Meet us there when you're done."

"Sure thing, Trace."

Tracy and Penny pulled on their coats and rushed out of the door.

"You better hurry, son. It's about that time" Wilbur said as he scooted down to the shop.

"Yessir"

Link finished his cake and tried his best to straighten up a bit. After giving Edna a kiss on the cheek and making her blush, he headed to the car.

Tracy and Penny were standing there waiting. He muttered an apology and opened the door for both of them. Tracy wouldn't look at him, but Penny's eyes were deadest on him. She had taken extreme notice of Link's recent behavior. She recognized the look in his eyes. That was pain. She saw the same look whenever she glared into the mirror. Link was definitely hiding something, but she was sure that it was bigger than anything Tracy could ever dream up.

* * *

Another typical day. Link was in his usual bad mood. He'd been even worse today than he was any other day, and once again it was wreaking havoc on Tracy's nerves. She figured that he could at least be happy on his birthday, but it seemed that she figured wrong. Tracy was beginning to feel defeated. No matter what she tried to do for Link, she never made him any happier. But she refused to back down. Which was why she was driving, and he was in the passenger seat wearing a blindfold. After the show, they had left Penny with Seaweed as they always did, but this time Seaweed would bring her home. Tracy had groveled to her parents for weeks, and it paid off. They let her go as long as she was home by ten.

"Tracy, where are you taking me?"

"Patience, Link, patience.", she said as she parked the car. She got out, went to the other side and helped Link out onto his feet. She steadied him and removed the blindfold.

Link took a look and smirked.

"Ugh… I knew you had a reason for wearing a dress…you can get me to do anything looking like that."

"All a part of my diabolical plan…now let's go inside."

Tracy and Link entered the restaurant. It was only a small crowd surrounding them, probably because it was still a bit early.

Tracy had already reserved their spot and the host led them to the table and seated them. After taking the order for their drinks and food, he waltzed away.

"This is nice, darlin;"

"It better be, I worked hard on this."

Link smiled. A real smile. The first one she'd seen in weeks.

"How does it feel to be eighteen, Link?"

"It feels the same as being seventeen, except that I can vote, be put on trial for murder…and date older women."

"Hey!"

"What? You would rather me kill someone than date an older woman?"

Not exactly. I'm just being possessive"

"I guess that you have a reason to be."

"Get over yourself, Larkin", Tracy chided.

Link was finally behaving normally. Tracy, at last, began to relax. They were having a good, long conversation when the waiter appeared with their food and drinks. Traccy raised her glass in preparation for a toast.

"To adult hood"

Link raised his glass.

"Even though it scares me shitless…"

Tracy giggled and their glasses clinked. She couldn't remember the last time he'd made her laugh.

They returned to their conversation, laughing and debating, until Link started staring at her intensely. The table fell silent; Tracy started blushing. Link was totally entranced by the way the candlelight illuminated her face…_wait_…_candlelight? _Link actually took a good look at the table and realized that there were indeed two lit candles there. His eyes immediately turned hard and cold as they did that morning, eyes reflecting the burning flames once again. His face turned to stone and so did Tracy's. She followed his line of vision and frowned. _What is it with him and candles? _She pondered this while he sat there in a trance-like state. Her eyes traced over the lines in his forehead and the vein popping out of his neck. _Why?_ _What's wrong with Link?_

After what seemed like hours, Link finally spoke.

"Tracy are you done with your food?"

The question was rhetorical. They had finished their meals about an hour ago.

"Yes, Link, of course. What-"

"There's the waiter. Let me pay so we can get out of here."

"But Link it's only eight. And I was supposed to pay."

"Don't worry your pretty little head about it, darlin", Link replied as he paid for their meal. Tracy knew that that was the end of discussion. Link rose to his feet and took her by the hand, leading her out of the restaurant.

"I'm driving."

"I don't want to go home now", Tracy protested. She had worked hard on this night. She'd be damned if she didn't at least a proper thank you or recompense.

"Hmph."

Link obeyed her command and drove to his house. Thankfully, his father wasn't home tonight either. So they could proceed with whatever Tracy had in mind.

Once they were inside the apartment, Tracy sloughed off her coat and watched Link get out of his jacket. She shot him a coy glance, even though the fire in her eyes was more of frustration than it was passion or lust. She presented her hand to him and he took it, and she started leading him to his bedroom. Link stopped dead in his tracks.

"Trace, you don't have to do that. It's only my birthday. It's-"

"Please, hush, Link and follow me."

He obediently followed her to the room and closed the door behind them.

"Take off your shirt, Link" she commanded, trying to look serious, but her voice was shaking. Link looked at her questioningly as he removed the garment and let it flutter to the floor. Now he was sporting a thin undershirt.

"Lie down."

He kept his eyes on her, totally intrigued. He sat on the bed and started to lean back.

"No, Link, face down."

He looked at her in confusion.

"Do it."

As soon as he was fully stretched out on his stomach, Tracy made her way to the bed, kneeling by his side. Her hand slid up his back, which made him shiver a bit. He turned his head to catch a glimpse of every move that she made. She continued her ministrations up and down his spine, making his skin flush and eyes droop. She stopped suddenly and he opened his eyes to see that her small hands were at the hem of her dress. She bunched the fabric in her hands and started pulling it up until it stopped short of showing her underwear.

Now Link was turned on, gawking at the creamy white skin of her thighs. But he would have never been prepared for her next move. Tracy shifted on the bed, picked up her leg and straddled Link from behind. It took everything Link had not to turn over and pin her to the bed. Tracy was careful not to put any weight on him or let herself brush up against him, even though he could still feel the slight warmth between her legs. She shifted around a bit before speaking.

"While I'm doing this, I'm the only one talking. You listen, understand?"

Link nodded.

"OK, then."

Tracy started at his temples, rubbing soothing circles into them.

"I've noticed that you have been a little off lately. I figure it's because of stress."

Link nodded.

"I thought so. What with the rigorous classes and the show and trying to _graduate early_". The words were like acid on her tongue.

Link nodded again.

"But I still don't understand why that has to turn you into a totally different person." Tracy said as she leaned over to nibble his ear. Her hot breath played against skin, making him moan a bit, but he was still a bit slighted by her words. He opened his mouth to rebut.

"Don't.Talk.To.Me. I told you to keep your mouth shut, didn't I?", Tracy asked in a harsh tone.

Link frowned to show his disapproval.

Tracy rolled her eyes and moved to the back of his neck, planting kisses on the flesh there and paying special to the moles there. Link didn't know whether to be angry or aroused, but it seemed that the latter was more prominent.

"Link, sweetie, don't you know I'll do just about anything for you? Don't you know how badly I need you?", Tracy asked pleadingly, now massaging his shoulders.

"Sometimes, I need you so badly it hurts. Sometimes it makes me think I'm stupid or foolish, either that or I'm in love with you.", she said, her voice barely a whisper. She wondered if he heard her.

Link heard every word, he just didn't know what to say. Wasn't she angry with him just a few minutes ago?

Tracy continued, anyway. She started rubbing his back, slowly drifting towards the hem of his undershirt.

"Link…", she muttered to herself.

He closed his eyes, tension returning to the temples she had just relieved.

Tracy slid her hand under his shirt, instantly comforted by the warmth of his glorious skin. She decided to go a bit further as she pulled the fabric up, exposing his flesh. Her expression transformed into absolute horror as she took in the sight.

Link heard her gasp, confirming his darkest fear. _Damn_

"Link! What happened to you?!" she screamed as her eyes ran over black-and-blue bruises. She dropped right on him, now uncaring that their bodies were touching like this, how unladylike her position was.

Link didn't dare look her in the eye. He remembered how he had gotten those. He remembered how his father had taken advantage of a slight misstep in which Link fell to the floor. His father consequently started to try to stomp his back in. James almost won that fight. Fortunately, Link found a way to come out victorious.

"My father and I don't always agree." Link said evenly, trying to shrug it off.

"Why would anyone do this to you? Why would anyone want to hurt you?", she asked as the tears fell from her eyes. Link wouldn't answer her question.

Tracy traced over the hideous shapes of the disfiguring bruises. Her face began to turn red with fury. she had never wanted to harm anybody until this particular moment.

She then lifted his shirt until his entire back was exposed. Leaning over, hot breath caressing his skin, she whispered sorrowfully...

"How could anyone do this to my Link?"

Link's silence screamed sorrow and shame.

Tracy placed a soft kiss on the darkest bruise.

"My Link...my poor, poor Link"

She continued to kiss each and every infliction. The dark ones, the already healing ones, not daring to miss one.

Link could feel her hot tears on his skin as she licked his wounds, so to speak. He couldn't bear to put any more pain in her heart than he was already causing. A tear fell against his will. He didn't deserve her sympathy. He was the one hurting her...

Link shifted suddenly, startling Tracy, causing her to jump up a bit. This gave him enough space to flip over and sit up, with Tracy's legs on either side of him. Tracy looked at him questioningly, but before she had the chance to speak, he pounced and pinned her to the bed. Link was now resting between her legs, the hem of her dress dangerously slipping. He reveled in the sudden heat that radiated from her private area. However, Tracy was in an immediate panic. He was close, too close. It felt so wrong, but amazingly good at the same time.

He kissed her fiercely, not even noticing that she wasn't exactly reciprocating. Tracy's mind was racing, trying to decide whether or not to stop him. They had never gone this far before and everything he was doing to her was...well, exhilirating. She decided to trust Link, for a change. Maybe he could control himself tonight...or maybe tonight was the night...

Link's hands gripped the hem of her dress.

Tracy gasped.

_Maybe not._

However, Link continued. His lips left hers and traveled up her arms, first one then the other, and attacked her neck.

Tracy inhaled deeply. She could handle this much...she could handle it.

He stopped suddenly and scooted back a bit. His hands traveled and down her legs and after gauging her reaction he lifted one off of the bed, leaving a trail of kisses as he traveled toward her inner thigh. His eyes were closed tightly; apparently he was in his own little world. Tracy's whole body was shaking now and she couldn't believe that he didn't feel it.

He picked up her other leg and gave it equal treatment.

The whole "trust" thing was about to get thrown out of the window

"Link...", she said breathlessly.

Link stopped abruptly and put her legs back down on the bed gently and returned to her lips.

"I _was_ gonna stop, if you woulda given me a few seconds. I was trying to kiss everything that was already exposed. But I guess I cheated in some areas, eh?" he said, lips brushing against hers.

"I'm sorry, Link."

"Don't be"

He pulled her dress back down so that she was covered and kissed her roughly, coming up for air after about five minutes.

"You're so good to me Tracy...so good. And I don't even deserve it"

He sounded like he was talking to himself. Tracy couldn't do anything but stare at him while he stared at her blankly.

Link studied her face for a while. He looked into her eyes and saw the woman that he had tried to forget. The other woman. The woman that invaded his dreams every night, singing her incessant song, making Link love her, driving him crazy. Tracy possessed some of the same features. The dark hair. The same brown eyes. The soft pink lips. Link had tried to keep both women in his heart, wondering if he could love them both at the same time. He had to admit sadly, that there wasn't enough room in his heart for the both of them, or at least he didn't think there was. As long as he had been with Tracy, he had discovered that his heart was bigger than he thought it was; she had opened it for him. However, the closer Tracy got to him, the more he held on to the other woman. He couldn't control it. And he hated himself for short-changing Tracy. He tried to let go of his little angel, but he couldn't bring himself to.He needed Tracy...

"Link? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Sorry, Trace."

He came back to reality and started to crawl off of the bed.

"Fix your hair and dress. It's almost ten. I'm taking you home."

* * *

"You understand, don't you Penny?"

"Yeah, Seaweed."

"I thought that you would be angry."

"Nope. Although it is kinda wrong that Link is keeping all that from Tracy, it isn't my place to tell her about it. He can tell her himself. She'll be alright. I think the kid's strong enough to deal with a little tradgedy.Shit, if I can do it she can do it."

"Yeah, but I figured that I would let Cracker Boy tell her his side of the story, ya know?"

"Yeah."

Penny was cradled in Seaweed's arms on the couch of the record shop, her fingers intertwined with his.

"Not a word to Tracy about this, though. Okay, Penny?"

"I heard you the first three thousand times, baby."

"I'm just surprised you're acting all...cavalier...about this whole situation. I mean, what about me?"

"I'm just gonna enjoy you while..."

Penny's sentence trailed off as she examined Seaweed's skin.

"We gotta work on that attention span of yours, love"

"I was just wondering..."

"What?"

"Some areas of your skin are darker than others, yet everything that's exposed gets the same amount of sun. See? Your knuckles are darker than the rest of your fingers. Your forearm is lighter than the rest of your arm. Why is that so?"

"I don't know. I never thought about it or even noticed it. I can't really explain that. I just know that whatever is exposed to sunlight more is darker."

"So your chest is lighter than your face and neck?"

Seaweed chuckled.

"You just may be right about that"

"Can I see?"

"Love, I would let you, but we ain't got time to be messin' around like that. It's almost ten, and we gotta get you home either before or around the same time Link comes with Tracy"

"Ugh...those two ruin everything."

"Damn right."

Penny held his hands tightly, looking at them lovingly.

"You're beautiful, Seaweed."

"Not as beautiful as you."

"I beg to differ"

"Let's just agree to disagree. Okay?"

"Sure..."

* * *

Tammy and Mikey exited the movie theater hand in hand.

"That was a great film, Mikey. I loved it"

"I knew you would dollface. I figured that we should see something you wanted to see since this is practically the last night we'll be spending together for a while"

Tammy frowned at this. She had been battling with Amber Von Tussle for months to keep Mikey. Although Amber did have him first, Tammy and Mikey's secret affair evolved into a relationship they both treasured. Amber was the only one who got in the way of that. However, after a while Amber grew bored of the whole ordeal and let them have each other. Tammy had been absolutely elated that she finally had the man she fought so hard for, but now he was about to slip from her grasp.

The couple walked to his car. Mikey held the door open for Tammy and let her in. He entered the driver's seat, started the car and drove off.

"Don't frown up Tams, I'll come back I'll just be away from Baltimore for only a little while. It's not forever,you know."

"It seems like it."

"Don't be silly dollface. I'll be back. Cheer up. Besides you've got something to look forward to tonight, unless you've forgotten" he said slyly

Tammy didn't forget. It had been on her mind the whole night.

"No, Mikey, I remember.", she said, smiling weakly. Her stomach was starting to do flips. She had tried to mentally prepare for this night, but to no avail. She was still a nervous mess. After what seemed like eons, Mikey pulled into Lover's Daze, the local make-out spot. He found a place to park amongst the foggy-windowed cars and brought his vehicle to a stop. He looked over at Tammy, who had her head down and her thumbs twiddling in her lap.

"Tams? Dollface?"

"Yes?"

"What's the matter?"

"I guess that I'm a little... nervous"

Mikey let out a huge sigh.

"Look, if-"

"No, Mikey. I promised you tonight. I promised."

Mikey opened the door and looked back at her.

"Then follow me..."

Tammy let herself out and followed Mikey to the backseat of the car. As soon as they were both seated, she stared at him, nervousness coloring her features. Mikey decided to make the first move. He leaned over and placed a soft kiss on her lips, followed by another. Tammy tried to resist, but failed, and kissed him back.

Mikey took this as his signal to move forward. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to his body, trying to resist the urge to run his fingers through her perfectly coifed hair. His lips wondered towards her pressure point, sucking on it gently. She moaned in response as he knew she would. Tammy was finally starting to loosen up, wrapping her arms around his neck. He took this chance to slowly lean her back onto the seat and position himself on top of her. Tammy's heart was racing in her chest, more out of thrill than fear. She kissed him fiercely, begging him for more. Mikey's hands traveled to the back of her dress Tammy got the hint and shifted a bit so that he could unzip the dress. As soon as he reached the bottom. He helped her wriggle out of the garment an pulled it down until it reached her midriff. He leaned back and took a good look at her.

"My, God, Tams. You're gorgeous."

Tammy blushed.

Mikey leaned back over her and kissed her passionately, his hands traveling up her sides, teasing the curve of her breasts. Her sensitive buds instantly hardened under his touch, her breath became ragged. He slowly brought his hands to cup her breasts, squeezing gently. Her back arched and he reached back there to unhook her bra. She eagerly helped him rip the blasted thing off of her body. He hugrily kissed her now bare breasts, taking her erect buds into mouth. Tammy moaned loudly, fueling Mikey's fire. Tammy had never known that sensations like these existed. All of a sudden, she was hooked. All she wanted, needed , was more. Mikey's sweet kisses traveled bown her stomach, simultaneously pulling her dress over her hips. and positioning himself between her legs. Tammy was immensely excited now, hips grinding instictively against his erection. Mikey cupped her breasts again, thumbing the erect buds, making her panties damp with arousal.

"Mikey..."

He already knew what she wanted.

His hands found the thin fabric of her panties and started pulling them down. Tammy raised her hips allowing him to them down to her ankles and then kicked them off onto the floor of the car, forgotten for the moment.

Mikey fumbled with his zipper. After a few nervous attempts he finally freed his erection. He moved closer to her entrance until he was less than a few centimeters away. He looked down at Tammy, whose eyes were glazed over with lust.

"Are you ready, Tams?"

"Yes, Mikey,please..."

"Okay, but this might be painful for a little while, but it's only temporary."

Tammy nodded, totally uncaring.

Mikey proceeded and slipped inside of her slowly, inch by inch.

He was only halfway in when he heard a sharp intake of breath.

"Mikey!"

"I know, I know, Tams. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

He immediately tried to withdraw from her, but she stopped him.

"Wait a minite, Mikey."

Mikey held his position while Tammy recuperated, which was three minutes of agony.

"Mikey?"

"You're okay, now?"

"Yes."

He sighed in relief and continued until he was fully sheathed inside of her.

Tammy was amazed at how full she felt at the moment. She wiggled her hips anxiously, wanting more.

Mikey moaned and fully withdrew himself, slamming back into her at full force. Tammy moaned in delight and demanded more. After a while, Mikey found a rhythm that had her moaning so loudly he had to cover her mouth so no one could hear them. He gave her slow, even strokes, reveling in her intense heat. However, eventually the slow strokes wern't enough for Tammy. She bucked her hips at a much faster pace, forcing Mikey to move with her.

"Mikey...harder...please..."

Mikey started to thrust inside her with all that he had, not caring if the car was rocking. He could feel her starting to tighten around him. He knew that she was about to fall apart in a matter of seconds. He thrusted with a little bit more force until he heard her muffled scream.

After a few final thrusts, he came, his seed spilling inside of her. He collapsed against her flame-hot body, trying to catch his breath.

After a few seconds of silence, he removed his hand from her mouth.

"Oh my God.." she exclaimed breathlessly

"I love you, Tams"

"I love you too, Mikey. More than anything in the world", she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck and breathed into the still silence.


End file.
